ChitownLiving | Chicago Real Estate + Life

During a home inspection last week my client, my client’s home inspector, and I were up on the roof of a mid-rise Chicago condo building my client intends to purchase a unit in.  A wonderful experience this time of year as the cold winter wind whipped across the flat rooftoop. Home inspection and issue detection are key to the home buying process.  The question over what should be covered in the condo home inspection is always asked.  Many say, heck it’s only a condo, what could be wrong?  Despite the pushback, I always recommend a full inspection of the unit, limited common elements, and a visual inspection of the common elements. So the next question from my clients is always what is a common element and what is a limited common element?  Let’s first define what common and limited common elements are.  So, from my non-legal perch here goes. Common Elements “In a condominium, all parts of a building normally used by all of the owners for their mutual use, convenience, or safety.” Examples (not all inclusive):

• Building Exterior
• Roof
• Hallways
• Elevator(s)
• Workout facility

Limited Common Elements “The term Limited Common Elements refers to a portion of the common elements so designated in the declaration as being reserved for the use of a certain unit or units to the exclusion of other units, including but not limited to balconies, terraces, patios and parking spaces or facilities.” Examples (not all inclusive):

• Balcony
• Terrace
• Patio
• Parking space
• Interior surface of perimeter walls, ceilings, floors
• Exterior doors and windows
• Any system or component that serves a single unit exclusively

So after all this, here is a question.  Would an air conditioner compressor located on the roof of a Chicago condo building be considered part of the unit, common element, or limited common element?  The answer is that it depends on the building.  Smaller, newer Chicago residential buildings typically allocate one compressor per unit and therefore are owned by the purchaser, while larger buildings have a huge compressor on the roof or elsewhere to serve the building and therefore are common. So in short, during your inspection, spend time in the unit, walk the roof if possible, view the compressor, walk the garage and facade … take your time.  Leverage the experience of your agent and inspector as they should be able to give you some insight into the building limited and common elements.